Plancxjbapii co



a snzcrs-snzzr I Patented Aug. 26, 1919.

/V JBecfl ner 6mm leg N. J. BECKNER.

SAFETY SWITCH LOCK.

APPLICATION FILED MAY]. I919.

N. J. BECKNER.

SAFETY SWITCH LOCK.

Mrucmon FILED MAY]. I919.

1 ,3 1 978. i Patented Aug. 26, 1919.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

A JBee Zngr II. COLUMBIA PLANOGIIAPII c0 WASHINGTON. n. c.

N. 1. BECKNER. SAFETY SWITCH LOCK.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 7. I9l9.

1,313,978. 7 PatentedAug. 26,1919.

3 $HEETS-SHEET 3.

attoznaq r||l mmmuw PLANOGRAPII c0, WASHINGTON, n. c.-

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

NOAH J. IBECKNER, 0F YAKIMA, WASHINGTON, ASSIGNOR TO SAFETY PATENT (30., OF YAKIMA, WASHINGTON, A CORPORATION OF WASHINGTON.

SAFETY SWITCH-LOCK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented A11 26, 1919.

Application filed May 7, 1919. Serial No. 295,271.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, NOAH J. BECKNER, a citizen of the United States, residingat Yakima, in the county of Yakima and State of \Vashington, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Safety Switch Locks, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to looks, and particularly to looks used on railway switch stands for the purpose of holding the ope ating lever or handle of the switch in its lowered and locked position after the switch has been thrown.

In the majority of switch stands in use today, the stand is provided with a central mast or shaft operatively connected to the switch, and with a table having an arcuate edge and through which the shaft or mast passes, the arcuate edge of the table being notched, and there being a block head resting upon and moving over the upper surface of the table, and a handle or lever attached to the block head and adapted to be swung down into a notch when the switch has been fully thrown in one direction or the other. Locks are provided for holding the pivoted section of the lever or handle in position within the notch of the table, but oftentimes a switehman neglects to shift the switch fully and a train is de 'ailed, with consequent loss of life.

To avoid these objections, I have provided a switch lock mounted upon the block head of the switch stand and adapted to engage the handle or lever when the latter is in a depending position and is properly disposed in one of the notches of the table, and pro vide means whereby the switch tender cannot remove the key from the lock until the switch has been fully thrown to one position or the other and the switch handle has been fully and properly depressed, the mechanism being such, however, that when the locking tang on the handle is drawn to its proper position in the lock, then the key will be immediately released and can be removed from the lock, thus compelling the brakeman or those who are intrustcd with the care of the switches to properly lock the switches.

A further object is to provide a construction of this character in which the locking mechanism is adjustable to tangsior keepers of different length and which will project to a greater or less extent through the block head.

A further object is to provide a construction of this kind having a pivoted tang engaging bolt adapted to be shifted out of its operative position by a key and which, when the tang is withdrawn, will immediately shift into a position which will lock the key from withdrawal from its escuteheon.

Another object in this connection is to provide means whereby the locking bolt may be held nearer to or farther from the base upon which it is mounted, and the tang actuated mechanism for the key lock may be likewise adjusted.

A further object is to provide a construction of this character in which the bolt which engages the tang of the switch stand is mounted for lateral oscillation and carries a yoke adapted to be engaged by the bit of the key so that when the key is inserted on a spindle and rotated, it will engage this yoke and force the yoke laterally together with the bolt, and provide a latch which, when the bolt is shifted to disengage the tang, will spring into place in front of the bolt, preventing its reverse action for the time being and holding the yoke in such position that the key cannot be turned back into register with the key-hole in the housing and, therefore, cannot be withdrawn, but when, however, the operating lever or handle is turned to its proper position, the tang carried thereby will enter the housing push back this bolt, the retaining member and permit the projection of the bolt into its locking position, which will carry the yoke into such position that the key may be withdrawn.

Other objects will appear in the course of the following description.

hly invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a fragmentary vertical sectional View of a conventional switch stand and my lock applied thereto, the housing of the lock being in section;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view through the lock housing showing the block head in elevation, the locking bolt being in its locking position;

Fig. 3 is a like view to Fig 2, but showing the locking bolt retracted;

Fig. at is a side elevation of the lock looking from the left hand side of Fig. 2, the casing being in section;

Fi 5 is a like View to Fi 1 but look- 2 b 2 mg from the right hand side of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary face View of the housing being removed.

In these figures, I have shown my lock applied to what is known as a Northern Pacific switch stand, and in Fig. 1, A designates the body of the switch stand, B the rotatable mast, C the table, which is notched at 0 at two points, D the arm extending from the mast and resting upon the table and having the block head at, and E. designates the handle which is pivoted to the block head and which, when swung down, engages in oneor the other of the notches 0. It will be seen that the handle E is pivotally mounted in a slot in the block head and the'end of the handle beyond the pivot is formed with a U-shaped staple or tang F, which extends out through a slot in the block head when the lever or handle E is in a vertical position. On ordinary switch stands, this tang is engaged by a padlock which prevents the handle being turned from its locked engagement with the notches 0 until the padlock has been removed.

One of the objections to such a construction as this is that sometimes the switchman is careless and does not move the handle to a suflicient degree so that the handle may drop into a notch, and sometimes the switchman neglects to place the padlock in the tang, and this leaves the switch unlocked. This permits it to be operated by unauthorized parties. 7 7

By my invention, I apply to the block head, a housing, designated generally 10, one wall 11 of which is provided with a keyhole 12 normally covered by a spring actuated cover 13. This wall 11 is shown as countersunk for the reception of the heads of bolts let, whereby the housing is held to the block head (Z. These bolts pass through passages formed in webs 15 and 16 in the housing and cast in one piece with the side wall and front wall of the housing. The pivoted cover 13 is urged to its closed position by a spring 17.

The rear wall 19 of the housing is held to the housing and disposed against the ends of the webs 15 and 16 by the bolts14, and also is held in place by screws 18 passing through the rear wall and into these webs. The locking mechanism is carried entirely on this rear plate. This rear wall is formed with a longitudinally extending, medially disposed slot 20, through which the tang F may be inserted. The upper end of the plate 19 is formed with a boss 21. This boss is longitudinally cleft or recessed, as at 22, and mounted upon the outer end of this boss is an upwardly extending pin 23, and rotatably mounted upon this pin is a member 24, held in place by a cotter pin 25. Attached to one side of the member 24: by means of a pivot screw, bolt, or pin 26 is an arm 27 which is angularly' turned at its end to form a bolt 28, this bolt being circular in cross section and the arm being relatively flat. The pin 23 constitutes a pivot upon which the member-2st and the arm 27 can rotate in a vertical plane, that is a plane approximately parallel to the plane of the plate 19. f The pin 26 constitutes a pivot on which the arm 27 can rotate in a plane at right angles to the plate 19.

A spring 29 is fastened at one end to the plate 19, is coiled intermediate its ends, and then has its other end engaged in a perforation in the arm 27. This spring is disposed in a general plane at an inclination to the plane of the plate 19 and, therefore, acts to urge the arm 27 both outwardly and away from the plate 19 and also laterally to a position to carry the bolt 28 across the slot 20.

For the purpose of adjusting the arm 27 inward against the actionof the spring 29, I mount upon the pin 23 and specifically above the cotter pin 25, the finger 30. This finger is slotted so as to oscillate upon the pin 23 and it is raised at its rear end so that only the forward end of the finger bears against the edge of the arm 27. An adjustii'ig screw 31 passes'downward through this finger and into a screw-threaded aperture in member 24:. It will be noted that by turning this screw downward, the arm 27 may be forced downward against the action of the spring 29, and that when the screw is turned outward, the spring 29 will force the arm 27 outward. The object of this adjustment will be later stated.

Carried by and forming part of the mem ber 2% is a key yoke. To this end, the member 24. has an outwardly projecting lug 32, and carried upon this lug is a yoke 33, which is approximately triangular in form and is disposed in a plane parallel to the plane of the plate 19. H mately heart-shaped opening 34 in it to provide a face 35, which is downwardly and laterally inclined. Extending from the boss 21 is a key spindle 36, designed to receive a key 37, the shank of which key is'hollow so as to fit over the key spindle 36, the shank being provided with a bit 38 adapted, when the key is inserted, to engage against the inclined face 35 and shift the yoke laterally, thus rotating the member 2 l' uponits pivot post 23 and thus carry the bolt arm 27 laterally against the action of the spring 29.. When the bolt is shifted laterally to its full extent it will release the U-shap'ed tang F and permit the operating handle E This yoke has an approxi:

as to prevent any return of the bolt to its to be turned to a horizontal or operative position.

In order to prevent the return of the bolt 28 after the bolt has been thrown, I provide a detent arm or tongue 39, which is mounted upon a transverse pivot pin 40 and extending through apertures in the side walls of the recess 22. This detent, when the bolt is thrown into engagement with the tang, is disposed upon the outer face of the bolt 28 and rests thereon, but when the bolt is shifted to the retracted position shown in Fig. 3, a spring -l1 urges the detent toward the plate 19 and into a position across the extremity of the bolt 28 so normal position until this detent or guard tongue has been shifted out of the way of the bolt 28 by contact with the tang F. This spring 41 bears at one end upon the outer face of the detent tongue and at its other end is carried in a recess in the key spindle 36 and is coiled intermediate its ends. I do-not wish, however, of course to be limited to any particular construction of this spring or any particularineans for mounting this spring. The movement of the tongue 39 is limited in one direction by means of an adjustable stop 4:2 in the form of a screw passing through the outer wall of the base 21 at the middle thereof and bearing against a projecting lug 43 on the pivoted end of the tongue 39, this lug extending approximately at right angles to the tongue. Now the spring 41 can urge the detent tongue toward the plate 19 only so far as the stop 12 will permit, and it will be obvious that by turning this screw $2, the tongue may be raised, that is shifted away from the plate 19 and against the action of the spring 4L1, and that by adjusting the screw outward, the spring 41 will bring the detent tongue nearer to the plate 19. This adjustn'ient of the detent tongue 39 is coordinated with and coacts with the adjustment of the bolt-carrying arm 27 by means of the finger 30, in other words when the finger 30 is adjusted outward and the arm 27 is allowed to move further outward under the action of the spring 29, then the detent tongue is also to be adjusted so that it will be held farther outward when the lug 43 engages with the stop 42, in other words the detent tongue must always be so adjusted that when it swings into its operative or retaining position, it will extend across the end of the locking bolt 28. It is for this reason that the detent tongue must be adjustedwith the adjusting of the looking bolt. The reason for adjusting the looking bolt nearer to or farther from the plate 19 is that the tangs F of different switch stands project different distances from the handle, and hence it is desirable that the locking bolt shall be adjusted nearer to or farther from the plate 19 to accommodate the different lengths of these tangs.

It will be seen from Fig. 2, that when the locking bolt is projected into its operative position and through the tang, it will bear against the face 4/4. of the web 15, which thus limits the lateral movement of the tang in one direction under the action of the spring a9 and prevents the parts from bindmg.

In actual use, as before stated, the housing 10 is attached to the block head (l in such position that when the handle E is turned to a horizontal position in one of the notches 0, the tang F will extend through the slot 20 in the plate 19. Assuming that the switch has been unlocked, the handle shifted to a new position and turned to its depending or vertical position, then as the tang F enters the slot 20 it will press against the detent 39 and shift this detent outward against the force of the spring 41 until the detent releases the end of the locking bolt 28. As soon as the detent and tang have passed the end of the locking bolt, the spring 29 will spring the locking bolt laterally into engagement through the tang and the switch is locked. lVhen the locking bolt has thus moved, the yoke 33 will also so be shifted as to permit the removal of the key 37. Until this has been accomplished, however, the key is held in such position that the side wall of the key-hole slot is not in proper alinement with the opening 3-t in the yoke and this side wall will engage over the key bit and prevent the removal of the key. As soon as the bolt has snapped into place, however, through the staple or tang, the yoke will move to a position where its opening is in proper alinement with the keyhole slot and the key may be removed. When it is desired to unlock the switch stand, the key is inserted through the keyhole slot and rotated against the base 35, rotating the yoke, the member 24 and the arm 27 to carry this arm out of engagement with the tang. As soon as the tang moves rearward, the detent 39 will follow the tang and will be disposed across the end of the locking bolt, preventing the return of the bolt to its normal position and the removal of the key until the tang has been again inserted throi'lgh the slot 20. Of course, it is possible to remove the key by reaching in through the slot 20 and forcing the detent outward by a suitable instrument and thus bring the parts to their normal position and permit the removal of the key, but obviously this would not be done by a switchman, when it would be so much easier to shift the switch arm or bolt to its proper position and release the key.

This construction, however, permits the release of the key without the necessity of locking the switch, if desired. After the switch is locked, however, it is impossible by manipulation to shift the lock without the use of a key, as the detent tongue forms a guard preventing the insertion of an instrument through the slot 20 which would engage the arm 27 to shift it laterally. It will thus be seen that this detent tongue performs two functions. It acts as a detent for the locking bolt when the latter has been retracted and prevents a projection of the locking bolt until after the tang has been properly inserted through the slot 20, and it also acts as a guard for preventing the operation of the locking bolt without the use of a key. 7

lVhile I have illustrated a form of my invention which is particularly adapted for the class of switch stands described, it is obvious that the mechanism might be modilied for use with other forms of switch stands and that many changes. might be made in the details of construction and ar-v rangement of parts without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Itwill be understood that this lock is equally applicable to those switch stands in which the switch stand itself carries a projecting tang and-the handle or operating lever of the switch standis slotted to engage the tang when the handle is in a verti. cal position. I have heretofore described this lock housing as being mounted on the block head, but, as above stated, this is not absolutely necessary, as it might be mounted on the lever.

, I claim 1. A switch stand lock including a pivoted arm, a bolt extending at an angle to the arm and rigid therewith, the bolt and arm being yieldingly urged to a locking position, key actuated means for shifting the bolt to a retracted position and operatively engaged with said arm and moving therewith, and means for preventing the removal. of the key until the bolt and arm have been returned to their locking position.

2. A switch stand lock including a pivoted arm, a bolt carried by the arm and extending angularly therefrom and rigid therewith, the bolt and arm being'yields V ingly urged in a direction to carry the bolt has been returned to its locking position in eluding a face plate having a keyhole, and a yoke moving with the bolt and receiving the bit of the key, the yoke being normally in register with the key-hole but moving out of register with the key-hole when the bolt is retracted, and means for holding the bolt in its retracted position with the yoke out of register with the key-hole plate until the locking tang of the switch stand has been gislertedinto position to be engaged by said 0 t. r p 4. A switch stand lock including abolt yieldingly urged to a locking position, key actuated means for shifting the bolt to a retracted position against the action of said urging means, and means for preventing the removal of the key until the bolt has been returned to its locking position including a detent automatically shifted into operative position to prevent the return of the bolt but releasing the bolt to permit its return upon the insertion of a locking tang into position to be engaged by the bolt.

5. A switch stand lock including a slotted plate through which the tang of swatch handle is adapted to be inserted when the switch handle is in its locked position, a locking bolt mounted upon said plate for movement across the face thereof and yieldingly urged into its locking position intersecting said slot, key actuated means for shifting the bolt to a retracted position, i

and means for preventing the removal of the key until the bolt has been returned to its 100 ing position including a detent disposed in front of said slot yieldingiy urged toward the plate and into the path of movement of the bolt when the latter is retracted to prevent a return of the bolt, but shiftable to an inoperative position and out of said path of movement by engagement with the tang of the switch handle.

6. A switch stand lock including a longi tudinally slotted base plate, a member rotatably mounted on the base plate and having a radially extending armcarrying ,an angularly disposed bolt, *a spring normally urging said arm to carry the bolt across the slot, key actuated means carried by the pivoted member for shifting the bolt to a retracted position, and means for preventing the removal of the key until the bolt has been returned to its locking position ineluding a detent pivotally mounted opposite said slot and'yieldingly urged toward the base plate and into the path of movement of the bolt,said detent being adapted to be shif out of the path of movement of the bolt by the insertion of the locking tang on the switch stand into said slot to thereby release the bolt and permit it to return to its normal position and permit the removal of the key.

7. A switch stand lock including a housing having a front plate provided with a key-hole and a back plate having a longitudinally extending slot, a member pivotally mounted within the housing for movement parallel to the base plate and having an outwardly ex tending arm formed with an angularly disposed bolt normally extending across the slot, the bolt being yieldably urged into the last named position, said member carrying a yoke having a key openingadapted to register with the key-hole in the front plate when the bolt is in .its locking position, but shiftable out of complete register therewith upon the actuation of a key and when out of complete registration preventing the withdrawal of the key, and means for locking the bolt in its retracted position and thus preventing the withdrawal of the key until the tang of the switch stand handle has been inserted through said slot.

8. A switch stand lock including a housing having a front plate provided with a key-hole and a back plate having a longitudinally extending slot, a member pivotally mounted within the'housing for movement parallel to the front plate and having an outwardly extending arm formed with an angularly disposed bolt normally extending across the slot, the bolt being yieldably urged into the last named position, said member carrying a yoke having a key opening adapted to register with the keyhole in the front plate when the bolt is in its locking position, but shiftable out of complete register therewith upon the actuation of a key and when out of complete registration preventing the withdrawal of the key, and means for locking the bolt in its retracted position and thus preventing the withdrawal of the key until the tang ofthe switch stand handle has been inserted through said slot comprising a pivotally mounted detent tongue disposed opposite the slot in the base plate and yieldingly urged into position across the path of movement of the bolt.

9. A switch stand lock including a housing having a front plate and a back plate, the front plate being formed with a key-hole and the back plate with a longitudinally extending slot adapted to receive the tang of a switch stand handle, a bolt pivotally mounted upon the base plate, a spring normally urging said bolt to a position extending across the slot, said pivot adjacent its pivotal axis carrying a key actuated yoke having an openin ada ted to completely "register with the ey=ho e when the bolt 15 in its locking position and partially register with the key-hole when the bolt is retracted, and in this position preventing the removal of the key from said key-hole, and a detent pivotally mounted on the base plate opposite the slot, the detent being yieldingly urged toward the plate into the path of movement of the bolt but being shiftable by the tang of the handle out of said path of movement to permit the return of the bolt to its normal position.

1.0. A switch stand lock including a base plate slotted to receive the tang of a switch stand handle, a bolt yieldingly urged into position across the slot and adapted to engage through said tang, key actuated means for shifting the bolt to a retracted position, the bolt when in a retracted position preventing the removal of the key from engagement with the bolt actuating means, a detent yieldingly urged to a position across the path of movement of the bolt to prevent its return to its locking position after the bolt has been retracted, but shiftable out of said retaining position when the tang is inserted through the slot in the base plate, and means for adjusting the bolt nearer to or farther from the base plate and correspondingly adjusting the detent.

11. A switch stand lock including a base plate having a slot through which the tang of a switch stand handle may be disposed, a member rotatably mounted upon the base plate for rotation in a plane parallel thereto, an outwardly projecting arm pivoted to said member for movement in a plane at right angles thereto and having an angularly projecting locking bolt, means urging the arm and member in position to carry the locking bolt across the slot and urging the arm outward away from the base plate, means limiting the outward movement of the arm with respect to the base plate, key actuated means mounted on the rotatable member whereby the bolt may be retracted, said means when the bolt is retracted preventing the release of the key therefrom, and means for holding the bolt retracted until the insertion of the tang through said slot including a detent pivoted on the base plate and disposed opposite the slot and movable in a plane at right angles to the base plate, a spring ur ing detent toward the base plate, and an a( justable stop adjustably limiting the inward movement of the detent toward the base plate.

12. A switch stand lock including a base plate having a slot through which the tang of a switch stand handle may be disposed, a member rotatably mounted upon the base plate for rotation in a plane parallel thereto, an outwardly projecting arm pivoted to said member for movement in a plane at right angles thereto and having an angularly pro jecting locking bolt, means urging the arm and member in position to carry the locking bolt across the slot and urging the arm outward away from the base plate, a finger carried upon said rotatable member and extending over the outer edge of the arm, said finger being movable toward or from the arm, a screw extending through the finger and into the member and limiting the outward movement of the finger whereby the finger will limit the outward movement of the bolt carrying arm away from the base plate, key actuated means carried by the rotatable member whereby the bolt may be retracted, said means preventing the removal of the key until the bolt is returned to its locking position, and means for reventing the return. of the bolt to its locking position until the insertion of a tang through said slot comprising a detent pivoted to the base plate and extending parallel to and opposite said slot, the rear end of said detent beyond its pivot being formed with a lug, a stop screw adjustab'ly limiting the movement ofsaid detent toward the base plate but permitting the movement of the detent away from the base plate imder the action of the tang, and

a spring urging the detent toward the base plate. a

- 13..The combination with a switch stand having a notched table, an operating arm and a handle pivoted to the operating arm and engageable when turned to a vertical position with the notches of the table, said operating handle carrying a tang of a locking device comprising a housing mounted on the arm and having a slot to receive the tang of the handle, the housing having tubular bosses extending from the front to the rear plate, screws passing through said bosses and engaging the housing with the operating arm, an arm pivoted within the housing and carrying an angularly projecting bolt and adapted to engage the tang on the operating handle, key actuated means mounted on the arm for shifting the bolt to a projected position to permit the removal of the tang from the locking device, and means for holding the locking bolt in a retracted position and preventing the removal of the key from the key actuated means until the tang of the handle has been inserted into the tang of the locking device.

14. The combination with a switch stand and a switch operating handle pivotally mounted upon the switchstand for movement into an approximately vertical position or into a horizontal position, a locking device and a perforated tang mounted one upon the switchstand and the other upon the handle, the locking device including a ivoted arm having an angularly rejected olt shiftable through the erforation in the said operating handle carrying a tang, of

means for locking the handle in one of said notches comprising ahousing mounted upon the operating arm and having a slot in one wall through which the tang of the handle may be inserted, another wall of the housing being provided with a key-hole, a locking bolt mounted within the housing, a yoke carried thereby normally disposed in register with the key-hole and adapted to receive the key but shifted out of entire register with the keyhole by a rotation of the key, and in this position preventing the removal of the key, and means mounted within the housing preventing a return of the bolt to its locking position until the tang of the operating lever is reinserted through said slot and including a member shifta'bleto an inoperative posi-' tion by engagement with the tang.

16. The combination with a switchstand having a notched table, an operating arm and a handle pivoted to the operating arm and engageable in the notches of the table,

said operating handle carrying a tang, a housing mounted upon the operating arm of the stand and slotted to receive the tang on the operating handle when the operating handle is turned into engagement with one of said notches,'the housing being provided with a key-hole, a locking bolt rotatably mounted within the housing and urged to a position across said slot to engage through the tang of the handle, said locking bolt having an operating yoke formed with an opening adapted to register entirely with the key-hole when the bolt is in its locking position, but to register partially with the keyhole when the bolt is in a retracted position to thereby prevent the removal of the key, and means for preventing the return of the locking bolt to its locking position until the tang on the handle is inserted through the slot, comprising a detent disposed opposite the slot and engagea'ble by the tang, said detent being urged into position across the path of movement of the locking bolt when the locking bolt and the tang are retracted.

'17. In combination in a switch stand a notched table, an operating arm and a handle pivoted to the operating arm and engageable with the notches in the table, a

locking device and a perforated tan mount;

ed one upon the switch stand and tie other upon the handle, the lockin device includan arm pivoted within the housing and having an angularly directed bolt insertible through the perforation in the tang, said arm carrying a yoke normally registering with the key hole in the base plate of the housing and adapted to be engaged by a key whereby the arm and bolt may be rotated into or out of engagement with the housing, said yoke When it is turned out of complete register with the key hole preventing the III removal of the key.

In testnnony whereof I hereunto aihx my signature in the presence of two witnesses. NOAI-l J. BEOKNER.

Witnesses FREDERIG B. \Vmun'r, ROBERT A. BOSWELL.

Gopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

